Nippy Mukesh Kumar from Hyderabad in Telengana was a flying winger, with terrific speed and accuracy. He played for the now disbanded Indian Airlines. His career started in 1988 and continued another 14 years. He represented India at Olympics (1992, 1996 & 2000), World Cup (1990, 1994, 1998), Azlan Shah Cup, Champions Trophy, SAF Games (gold, 1995) and Asian Games (Gold 1998, 1990, 1994) with aplomb. He combined with Dhanraj Pillay in the forwardline, the combination was the mainstay of Indian hockey in the entire 90s. He was awarded Arjuna in 1995 and Padamshree in 2003.